NORBA National Championship Series, Round 5 - MTBMammoth Mountain, USA, September 8-10, 2000Schedule
Day 1 - September 8: Pro Men and Women cross countryMatthes and Larsen capture US titlesIn a scene reminiscent of the 1997 Chevy Trucks NORBA National Championship Series finals, 2000 Olympian Ruthie Matthes (Trek/Volkswagen) and Steve Larsen (LL Bean Mongoose) donned the 2000 U.S. national cross-country champion jerseys once again, this time at Mammoth Mountain, California. The newly crowned national champions claimed their stake after Matthes placed third in Friday's final cross-country race and Larsen took first. While Larsen won the national jersey and the overall series title, 2000 Australian Olympic team member Mary Grigson (Gary Fisher/Saab) won the women's overall series title. Matthes, however, was the top American at second overall. Only U.S. riders are able to claim the Stars and Stripes jersey. This marks the second national title for Larsen, while Matthes now holds four. Friday's finals also marked the final U.S. appearance for the 2000 U.S. Olympic Mountain Bike Team. The five-member team leaves Tuesday, Sept. 12 for Sydney. Last year's national champion Alison Dunlap (Team GT) placed second in Friday's race, her first mountain bike race after returning from road training in Europe. Ann Trombley (Koulius Zaard) took fourth, while Tinker Juarez (Volvo/Cannondale) was seventh in the men's race. Last year's national champion Travis Brown (Trek/Volkswagen) did not finish. The women's race eventually shook out like most of the four preceding national races this year. Grigson, who usually has a slow start, shot off from the beginning of the 26-mile race, which took racers up to 9,400 feet. By the end of the first lap, just 26 minutes in to the race, Grigson held a 20-second lead over Dunlap and 2000 Argentine Olympian Jimena Florit. By the start of the third lap, the Aussie was ahead of the field by more than one minute, never faltering on her way to the finish. "I actually surprised myself today. It was a really long race, and the wind was brutal. I'd feel strong sometimes and then a big gust of wind would come by and I think 'Oh, I've got nothing,' " said Grigson, who won four of the five 2000 national series races. "I think the other riders expected my usual...be there, be there, then bang. I'm over the moon about the race today. To walk away to the Olympics now is amazing." Meanwhile, it looked to be a tight race between Dunlap and Florit for second, but the Argentine flatted at the end of four of five laps. Florit's bad luck allowed Matthes and Trombley to capitalize on their pre-Olympic strength. For Matthes, Friday's race proved to be good preparation for the upcoming Olympic Games. "It was a long altitude race and a long day. In the last lap, I felt like I was going in slow-mo. I feel good though. I've had some rest and it's good to shake out the legs before the Olympics. It feels really good to win the national title. It's the fourth one (national mountain bike championship), so it’s special. The Olympics are next, and it's a great opportunity. It will be a lot of fun." Like Grigson, Larsen led his race from the start. The Oregon rider came into Mammoth on a roll, winning the last two national races in Utah and Washington. Among those chasing the '99 Pan American Games gold medalist was past national collegiate mountain bike champion Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski (Boulder, Colo. -- Nantucket Nectars-Specialized)) and 2000 Russian Olympic team member Pavel Tcherkassov (Gary Fisher/Saab). Juarez also tried a charge at Larsen, but any attacks proved fruitless for all three men. Larsen jumped from a 50-second lead at the end of the second lap to a one minute and 40 second lead at the close of the third. The gap helped clinch the national title for Larsen. "I didn't know what to expect today. I honestly didn't expect to win this one, but this course has always been good for me, and my fitness is on," said Larsen, who was the top American in 1997, but not the overall series winner. "I just wanted to have a good race, and it feels good to win the series title outright. It's a great honor to win the whole series, and I proved I'm the strongest guy out here. It means a lot to me. The series title wasn't a real priority at the start of the season, but I'm proud to win it." Horgan-Kobelski, who recently placed third overall at the Mercury Tour in Colorado, put in his best national race finish Friday, ending up second. His finish Friday was good enough to earn him the 2000 U.S. under-23 national title. "I surprised myself today. I thought I was on my way down, because of my training in the last couple of weeks. I have the confidence now to race with front guys. It’s a great way to end the season," Horgan-Kobelski said. ResultsPro Women: 1. Mary Grigson (Aus) Gary Fisher/Saab 2.14.00 2. Alison Dunlap (USA) Team GT 3:29 3. Ruthie Matthes (USA) Trek-Volkswagen 4:49 4. Ann Trombley (USA) Residence Club/KZ 4:56 5. Jimena Florit (Arg) RLX Polo Sport 5:39 6. Audrey Augustin (USA) Koulius Zaard 5:59 7. Rene Marshman (USA) Moots 6:10 8. Kelli Emmett (USA) Litespeed 7:13 9. Shonny Vanlandingham (USA) SoBe/HeadShok 7:50 10. Lanie Mason (USA) Cane Creek 8:36 Pro Men: 1. Steve Larsen (USA) LL Bean/Mongoose 2.31.00 2. Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski (USA) NN/Specialized 2:15 3. Pavel Tcherkassov (Rus) Gary Fisher/Saab 2:56 4. David Wiens (USA) RLX Polo Sport 3:14 5. Seamus McGrath (Can) Haro/Lee Dungarees 3:16 6. Jimi Killen (USA) Schwinn Toyota RAV4 4:14 7. Tinker Juarez (USA) Volvo-Cannondale 6:10 8. Ryder Hesjedal (Can) Gary Fisher/Saab 6:43 9. Pete Swenson (USA) SoBe/HeadShok 7:09 10. Frank Mapel (USA) Trek/VW/JBL September 9: Pro Men and Women short track and dual slalomShort track and dual champions decidedAfter a day of fast action and close races, four national champions emerged from Saturday's Chevy Trucks NORBA National Championship Series Finals at Mammoth Mountain, Calif. Carl Swenson and 2000 U.S. Olympian Ann Trombley claimed the short-track cross-country national titles, while Brian Lopes (Volvo-Cannondale) and Cheri Elliott (ODI/Maxxis) snagged the U.S. championships in the SoBe Dual Slalom. Winning Saturday's short-track races were Swenson in the men's event, while 2000 U.S. Olympian Alison Dunlap (Team GT)) won the women's race. Reigning world dual slalom champion Wade Bootes (Trek-Volkswagen) from Australia won the men's SoBe Dual Slalom, with past national dual slalom champion Leigh Donovan (Schwinn Toyota RAV4) taking the women's event. Lopes was the only rider to claim both the national and series overall titles. Only U.S. riders are able to claim the Stars and Stripes jersey, however, international riders may earn the series titles. 2000 Argentine Olympian Jimena Florit and Russian Olympian Pavel Tcherkassov won the short-track cross-country titles, while Aussie Katrina Miller won the women's dual slalom series overall. Swenson's victory Saturday did not come easy. For most of the 25-minute race, the group of the front consisted of nearly 10 riders, including Tchkerkassov, Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski (Boulder, Colo.) and Canadians Seamus McGrath and Chris Sheppard. Tcherkassov had the advantage of Canadian Gary Fisher-Saab teammate Ryder Hesjedal, while McGrath and Sheppard also worked as a team. Swenson relied on RLX Polo Sport teammate Dave Wiens (Gunnison, Colo.) before breaking off the front in final laps. "This is a great way to end the season. I'll keep today in my mind all winter long," said Swenson, after winning his first short-track race. "I felt good once I got going today. With three laps to go, I knew things were going well, but you never can tell what will happen until you cross the finish line. Even though I've done better in the short-track this year, I've always considered myself a cross-country rider. It's nice to have the national title though." The women's race proved to be a tight competition as well, with Dunlap making an aggressive attack just two minutes in to the race. Hanging with Dunlap was Florit, Trombley, 2000 Australian Olympian Mary Grigson, Rachel Lloyd (San Anselmo, Calif.) and Susan Haywood (Davis, W.Va.). With the series title coming down between Grigson and Florit, the Argentine rider recruited Dunlap on her side, with Grigson left on her own. Grigson managed well though, riding in the front for most of the race. Dunlap, however, made her move on the last descent in to the finish and rode to victory. Florit and Grigson sprinted to the line, with Florit edging out the Aussie. "I wanted to win today, but I knew right away that I didn't feel strong, so I had to be tactically smart," said Dunlap, who the short-track race in Vermont in June. "Mary (Grigson) was better on the descents, so I knew I had to the first in the downhill on the last lap if I wanted to win." For Trombley, Saturday marked her first national title in her five-year racing career. "It feels awesome to win the title," the 2000 Olympian said. Saturday wrapped up with the Lopes and Bootes in the SoBe Dual Slalom finals, a rematch of this year's world championship finals. With second-ranked U.S. rider Eric Carter (Temecula, Calif.) crashing in his race against Bootes, Lopes needed only to sail safely to the national title. Elliott's nearest national title threat was Tara Llanes (Newport Beach, Calif.). Elliott dismissed Llanes early in the rounds, giving her breathing room. Elliott eventually finished fourth, with Donovan beating out Miller in the final. "I'm very giddy right now," Elliott said. "Tara (Llanes) was who I was worried about, but I went against her early and was bale to knock her out. It was good to get that monkey off my back early on." Chevy Trucks NORBA National Championship Series finals action wraps up Sunday, Sept. 10, with the VISA Downhill.
ResultsShort Track Cross CountryPro Women: 1. Alison Dunlap (USA) Team GT 2. Jimena Florit (Arg) RLX Polo Sport 3. Mary Grigson (Aus) Gary Fisher/Saab 4. Ann Trombley (USA) Koulius Zaard 5. Audrey Augustin (USA) Koulius Zaard 6. Sue Haywood (USA) Trek/VW Tourism 7. Shonny Vanlandingham (USA) SoBe/HeadShok 8. Lanie Mason (USA) Cane Creek 9. Carmen Richardson (USA) SoBe/HeadShok 10. Rachel Lloyd (USA) Voodoo Cycles Pro Men: 1. Carl Swenson (USA) RLX Polo Sport 2. Pavel Tcherkassov (Rus) Gary Fisher-Saab 3. Seamus McGrath (Can) Haro/Lee Dungarees 4. Chris Sheppard (Can) Haro/Lee Dungarees 5. Jimi Killen (USA) Schwinn Toyota RAV4 6. Ryder Hesjedal (Can) Gary Fisher/Saab 7. Marc Gullcikson (USA) Mongoose Pro 8. Jason Tullous (USA) Giant 9. Andres Brenes (CRc) Café Costa Rica 10. Andreas Hestler (Can) Ford Devinci Dual SlalomPro Women: 1. Leigh Donovan (USA) Schwinn Toyota RAV4 2. Katrina Miller (Aus) Jamis 3. Lisa Sher (USA) White Bros./Azonic 4. Cheri Elliott (USA) ODI/Maxxis Pro Men: 1. Wade Bootes (Aus) Trek/Volkswagen 2. Brian Lopes (USA) Volvo-Cannondale 3. Eric Carter (USA) Team GT 4. Mike King (USA) Haro/Lee Dungarees September 10: Pro Men and Women DownhillCarter and Giove capture downhill titlesFor the second year in a row, Eric Carter (Team GT) and Missy Giove (Foes/Azonic) walked away from the VISA Downhill National Championship Series as U.S. national champions. Topping off her second career national championship, Giove also won Sunday's event at Mammoth Mountain, California. Fabien Barel (Team GT) from France took the men's gravity race. Carter won his first downhill U.S. national title in 1999 as the top American, but not the series leader. This year proved different, as the two-time national dual slalom champion earned enough points at Mammoth Mountain to overtake series leader John Kirkcaldie (Rocky Mountain) from New Zealand. Carter went into Sunday's final after crashing in the SoBe Dual Slalom Saturday. Though he blacked out for a few moments, Carter did not suffer injuries and was able to move on to his second national downhill title Sunday. Carter led for much of the pro men's downhill before Nathan Rankin (Foes/Azonic) from New Zealand knocked him out of the top spot by just more than one second. Carter was once again denied his first national series race win. Rankin held on to the top through several challengers until Barel busted the Kiwi's time by more than nine seconds. "I'm happy. The track was very technical and it was hard with the altitude," said Barel, who didn't finish the Mount Snow, Vt., national race in June after breaking his wheel. "I like racing here because the Americans are good people, and they ride really fast. This is my kind of racing." Carter was brought to tears after hearing he clinched the national championship and series title. After struggling with his 2000 World Cup season, Carter turned his focus to the national series, he said. "I'm a little overwhelmed right now," Carter said. "I threw the title away here in 1996 because I rode so poorly in the final, so I didn't want the demons to follow me. I didn't think I was going to be able to pull it off. I went off line right at the start. I relaxed for about 10-15 seconds to get my composure, and I just stayed in my tuck for the rest of the race." The women's race had the same, if not more, drama than the men's event. Winner of three of the four races prior to the finals, Elke Brutsaert (Schwinn Toyota RAV4) led the series standings going in to Mammoth Mountain. Brutsaert came to the finals with a major injury though -- a stitched up hole in her left hamstring. At August's World Cup race in Austria, Brutsaert injured the hamstring, but had been making a quick recovery since. Behind Brutsaert in the standings was Giove. If the '94 world champion Giove finished first, Brutsaert had to place 11th or higher to capture her first U.S. title. It didn't happen though, as Brutsaert crashed at least once on the course and eventually ended up 15th. Though the celebration would come later, Giove was noticeably disappointed Brutsaert didn't take the title. "I'm bummed for Elke. I wanted her to win the title," Giove said. "I wanted to win every national race this year. I made some amateur mistakes this year that a seasoned pro doesn't make. It's going to be more difficult for these women next year because I want to win every national race, and next year I'll have some more support to do it." Another injured rider fared well Sunday. Marla Streb (Yeti) tore her hamstring in August at the fourth round of the VISA Downhill National Series, but came back at Mammoth Mountain to finish second. Sunday marked the last race of mountain bike legend John Tomac's (Cortez, Colo. -- Tomac) 25-year cycling career. He will continue to manage his Tomac mountain bike team and work on his Colorado ranch he shares with his wife and two kids. "It (my last race) feels strange, but I don't think it will be that different until the next season starts and I'm not racing. The support has been great, and it's just been years of support and friendship," Tomac said.
ResultsPro Women: 1. Missy Giove (USA) Foes/Azonic 4.52.71 2. Marla Streb (USA) Yeti 0.19.45 3. Vanessa Quin (NZl) Giant 0.20.57 4. Lisa Sher (USA) White Bros./Azonic 0.20.98 5. Tara Llanes (USA) Subaru/Specialized 0.22.45 6. April Lawyer (USA) Maxxis 0.23.42 7. Kathy Pruitt (USA) Sunrace/Santa Cruz 0.25.16 8. Cheri Elliott (USA) Maxxis/ODI 0.25.50 9. Tai-Lee Muxlow (Aus) Intense 0.35.76 10. Kristina Nichols (USA) Dirtworks/XMO 0.37.49 Pro Men: 1. Fabien Barel (Fra) Team GT 4.03.18 2. Nathan Rankin (NZl) Foes/Azonic 0.09.24 3. Eric Carter (USA) Team GT 0.10.83 4. Michael Ronning (Aus) Intense 0.11.44 5. Jared Rando (Aus) Pro JrX 0.12.62 6. Bas De Bever (Ned) Be-One 0.13.34 7. Colin Bailey (USA) Intense/Troy Lee 0.14.47 8. Rich Houseman (USA) Tomac 0.14.79 9. Nathan Rennie (Aus) Yeti 0.15.36 10. Cedric Gracia (Fra) Volvo-Cannondale 0.15.50 Final Overall StandingsCROSS COUNTRY Pro Women: 1. Jimena Florit (Arg) RLX Polo Sport 710 pts 2. Mary Grigson (Aus) Gary Fisher/Saab 704 3. Ann Trombley (USA) Koulius Zaard (U.S. national champion) 656 4. Sue Haywood (USA) Trek/VW Tourism 592 5. Audrey Augustin (USA) Koulius Zaard 580 Pro Men: 1. Pavel Tcherkassov (Rus) Gary Fisher-Saab 732 pts 2. Seamus McGrath (Can) Haro/Lee Dungarees 710 3. Ryder Hesjedal (Can) Gary Fisher/Saab 680 4. Chris Sheppard (Can) Haro/Lee Dungarees 678 5. Carl Swenson (USA) RLX Polo Sport (U.S. national champion) 650 SHORT TRACK CROSS COUNTRY Pro Women: 1. Mary Grigson (Aus) Gary Fisher/Saab 800 pts 2. Ruthie Matthes (USA) Trek-Volkswagen (US national champion) 720 3. Jimena Florit (Arg) RLX Polo Sport 650 4. Ann Trombley (USA) Residence Club/KZ 622 5. Audrey Augustin (USA) Koulius Zaard 572 6. Chrissy Redden (Can) Gary Fisher-Saab 550 7. Rene Marshman (USA) Moots 546 8. Shonny Vanlandingham (USA) SoBe/HeadShok 546 9. Kelli Emmett (USA) Litespeed 538 10. Ann Grande (USA) gymamerica.com 526 Pro Men: 1. Steve Larsen (USA) LL Bean/Mongoose 774 pts 2. Pavel Tcherkassov (Rus) Gary Fisher/Saab 698 3. Seamus McGrath (Can) Haro/Lee Dungarees 622 4. Marc Gullickson (USA) Mongoose Pro 562 5. Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski (USA) Nantucket Nectars/Specialized 530 6. Tinker Juarez (USA) Volvo-Cannondale 528 7. Ryder Hesjedal (Can) Gary Fisher/Saab 524 8. Carl Swenson (USA) RLX Polo Sport 510 9. Andreas Heslter (Can) Ford Devinci 506 10. Pete Swenson (USA) SoBe/HeadShok 480 DUAL Pro Women: 1. Katrina Miller (Aus) Jamis 720 pts 2. Cheri Elliott (USA) ODI/Maxxis (U.S. national champion) 680 3. Leigh Donovan (USA) Schwinn Toyota RAV4 660 4. Tai-Lee Muxlow (Aus) Intense 420 5. Tara Llanes (USA) Subaru/Specialized 380 Pro Men: 1. Brian Lopes (USA) Volvo-Cannondale 620 pts 2. Eric Carter (USA) Team GT 600 3. Mike King (USA) Haro/Lee Dungarees 520 4. Wade Bootes (Aus) Trek/Volkswagen 500 5. Rich Houseman (USA) Tomac 400 DOWNHILL Pro Women: 1. Missy Giove (USA) Foes/Azonic 728 pts 2. Elke Brutsaert (USA) Schwinn Toyota RAV4 722 3. Tara Llanes (USA) Subaru/Specialized 660 4. Lisa Sher (USA) White Bros./Azonic 628 5. Vanessa Quin (NZl) Giant 618 Pro Men: 1. Eric Carter (USA) Team GT 660 pts 2. Michael Ronning (Aus) Intense 648 3. Nathan Rankin (NZl) Foes/Azonic 620 4. John Kirkcaldie (NZl) Rocky Mountain 604 5. Nathan Rennie (Aus) Yeti 596 |